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Monday, May 06, 2013

Rolled noodles Ngũ Xã (phở cuốn Ngũ Xã)

I don't know for how many weeks, my review about "10 Vietnamese street foods we can't live without"has been a big hit and always at the top of the list...in my blog! At the same time I also got comments from some readers that it's not fair, as my 10 dishes are mostly from Saigon. I have to admit they are right.My last trip to Hanoi was very short, I didn't have enough time to try everything of what I got in my note: I missed a famous beef noodles at Bat Dan as they were closed for very long Tet holiday, I also didn't try another popular Hanoi's flavor "rice noodles with grilled pork" at Ngoc Khanh street or favorite by the youth in Hanoi - the jackfruit yogurt, the yogurt mixed with dark red sticky rice...

I'm sorry but I'm sure I will review it soon "The 10 hawker foods we can't live without in Hanoi".
Today, it's not an excuse, but I'm happy to share one more dish from the North - phở cuốn Ngũ Xã (literally means rolled noodles Ngũ Xã).

Similar to some rolls we have in Saigon but here - no oily and the fillings are warm.

It was my friend's treat for my last night in Hanoi, he took me there and Ngũ Xã turned out a name of the area, fairly far from the old quarter. To be honest, if you ask me how to get there, I would say you better take a cab. It was a Tuesday night, around 8:00pm, not crowded. According to my friend, there are two places in Hanoi, famous for this "rolled noodles Ngũ Xã", where we have been is a bigger place than the other one, not only bigger, but also lighter for my photos. How nice!

Rolled noodles are soft but strong, tasty, in the South they would be shining due to the oil.

I have to admit the rolled cake here is very good, I like the noodles texture, strong, not oily, tastier than the one in Saigon. The meat fillings also good and especially quite warm. The only problem is the dipping sauce. The dip sauce in Hanoi is light, I wouldn't say it's flat but by some how I used to the strong, sweet, a bit spicy sauce, typical southern taste.

Dipping sauce is quite different from what we have in Saigon: lighter, not sweet, not sour...

Honestly sometime I prefer not to dip into any sauce, the roll after my first bite!

After a few rolls of phở cuốn Ngũ Xã, we still ordered one more - deep fried noodles, served with stirred veggies and beef. Crispy from the outside, strong from the inside, tasty when we dip into the sauce or just mix with veggies, beef meat. It reminds me the deef fried noodles in Chinatown in Saigon, but I would prefer Hanoi style as the stirred veggies here, less oil, not very thick sauce...

Deep fried noodles served with stirred veggies and beef meat at Ngũ Xã.

A piece of deep fried noodles - same noodles for the rolled ones? Crispy, tasty!

Here you go, bon appetite!

As I mentioned in the beginning, I need to review the top 10 street food in Hanoi, I have some in mind, so I hope I will probably share with you soon. Meanwhile, just sit back and enjoy your rolled noodles!
Bon appetite!

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I used to travel a lot in my corporate life but never took any photo, neither wrote down any note. In 2011 when I decided to take a break from business, I started my first blog, it was all of a sudden while chatting with a friend in a coffee shop, he created the first platform for me, taught me how to do it, even my blog's name came up just in a few minutes later! Anyway I first heard about blogging, back in 2007-2008 when someone sent me a link to some English reporter's blog about the street food he experienced in Vietnam. I would say that blog was my first inspiration. Viet Street Food is not only about the food that we eat on the street, even not about how to cook it, it's more about my memories related to that or another food experience, my feelings and some other stories in my life.